His expression didn’t shift. Not surprised. Not guilty. Just… resigned.
“Yes,” he said quietly.
I swallowed hard. “Do you have one too?”
“No,” he said, leaning back a bit. “I made a deal with the crown so I wouldn’t have to marry. At least not someone I didn’t choose.”
I frowned. “How did you manage that? A deal?”
He nodded. “I had my marriage contract nullified. But I agreed to do some… undercover work.”
Of course.
“May I ask why?” I asked, unsure if I really wanted the answer. “Was your bride awful?”
His mouth twisted into something between fondness and regret. “Not at all. She was quite lovely. She would’ve tried her best to make me happy.”
He paused, tapping his fingers lightly against the table.
“But she didn’t love me,” he said. “She didn’t love men.”
I blinked.
“I see.”
It was strange. I could imagine a hundred women falling for Remy with his quiet competence and dangerous charm. But I hadn’t considered that one circumstance.
It was the first real smile he’d seen from me in days.
He tilted his head slightly. “I wouldn’t want a life built on someone else’s sacrifice.”
I met his gaze. “You deserve one built on your own choices.”
Something passed between us then. Not the old tension, not the ghost of what we used to be. Something quieter. Truer.
It was the first real conversation we’d had since he left me.
He looked down at his hands. “I wanted things to be different.”
“There was a time,” I said softly, “when I did too.”
He nodded, slowly. “But that’s over.”
I didn’t argue.
I just said, “I don’t know what I want anymore.”
Then looked toward the window, toward the distant shape of Kaelith flying along the outer ridge.
“Other than for her to trust me.”
Chapter
Eight
Major Kaler’s boots struck the stone floor with purpose, the distinct rhythm cutting clean through the haze of the quiet dining hall.
Remy and I looked up in unison.
